Last week I wrote a blog post about making a plan for 2012. In that post, I touched briefly at the end on the concept of making a plan and then being open to inspired action. I wanted to elaborate on that just a bit today.

For the most part, I get my goals. I decide what I want, create a clear vision and plan, and then celebrate once I get it. The thing that I've noticed recently, however, is how often I look back once I've hit the mark and reached my goal and realize that the path I took to get there was completely different than the one I mapped out or expected.

And often times, the path I've walked wasn't even one I knew existed (or would have thought I had access to) when I set the goal. In fact, sometimes I make a plan without really knowing exactly how I'm going to execute it because I've learned that when a need arises for a piece of the puzzle that's missing, it always show up, as if by magic.

That's where inspired action comes in. You have to be willing to listen to and act on your intuition, even when you're not exactly sure where the action will take you, trusting that you're being led by a power greater than you with more knowledge of the outcome. In other words, step out in faith and just do it if it feels inspired. I'll give you an example.

This time last year, I had a very clear goal for creating an online virtual academy for direct sellers. I wanted to be able to create "classes" online with pre-recorded, short pieces of my material that students could access and learn at their own pace. I also wanted a way to work with them once they had assimilated the material, helping them to integrate that learning into their businesses. And I wanted to work with as many people as possible…in about eight hours a week.

I had no idea if there was even a system out there that could do that, but I stared creating the material for the modules anyhow. A leap of faith. Then, in early December, I got an e-mail from one of the online information marketers I follow about a coach from the UK who could teach me to coach multiple clients in about 5 hours a week. I'd actually seen the same promotion for the same free call at least two other times last year and completely ignored it. Although I'm an accredited life and business coach, I don't really make my living coaching individual clients. I consider myself more of a trainer and mentor. So this call wasn't for me, it was more for my coaching friends who needed that information (or so I thought). But as I read the e-mail, I got that unmistakeable intuitive tug that told me I needed to sign up for and attend the free call. So I followed it, not really seeing the point but knowing better than to argue (which has never served me. Whenever I choose to ignore my intuition, I pay a heavy price that generally leaves me feeling regret and frustration, at the very least).

Long story short, the coach doing the free call's name was Nicola Bird and the program she was selling on the call was an online coaching system called Jigsaw Box. It was exactly what I needed for my academy. I couldn't have designed it more perfectly if I'd tried. The perfect system had literally fallen into my lap, and I would have missed it completely if I hadn't taken the inspired action of signing up for that free call. In the past year, over 115 people have become students and changed their businesses with the Direct Sales Virtual Academy.

So the next time that little voice inside you starts nudging you to drive a different way today or check out a seemingly unrelated video your friend forwards you from Youtube, or stop by your husband's office unannounced for lunch, follow it. You just might find that the solution you've been looking for that can make all the difference in you getting what you want is somehow tied to that seemingly random act.

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Julie Anne Jones is direct sales corporate consultant, coach, and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services, and to read her weekly blog posts, visit her at www.julieannejones.com.